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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASTANA 001816 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM SOCI KZ
SUBJECT:  KAZAKHSTAN:  ALMATY NOTES -- ZHOVTIS' CASE DISCUSSED ON 
THE STREETS, IN THE MEDIA 
 
REF: ASTANA 1693 
 
ASTANA 00001816  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. The "Almaty Notes" series is intended to maintain focus on 
developments in civil society, the media, and the opposition in 
Almaty, Kazakhstan's "southern capital."   For this edition, we 
review how the local media and civil society have reacted to the 
conviction of leading human rights activist Yevgeniy Zhovtis for 
vehicular manslaughter. 
 
AZAT PARTY HOLDS PROTEST, POLICE STAND BY 
 
¶2. On October 7, three leading activists of the Azat opposition 
party -- deputy chairman Petr Svoik, deputy chairperson Marzhan 
Aspandiyarova, and head of the party's Almaty branch Kadyrzhan 
Askarov -- organized a public protest in support of Evgeniy Zhovtis 
at the popular "Arbat" promenade in Amaty.  Approximately 20 people, 
including opposition journalists, NGO activists, and several 
passers-by, gathered to listen to the activists explain the details 
of the case and why they believe the conviction was politically 
motivated.  Svoik warned that the Almaty regional court's decision 
to deny the appeal of journalist Tokniyaz Kuchukov does not bode 
well for Zhovtis' appeal hearing on October 20.  In a potentially 
precedent-setting case, Kuchukov was sentenced on August 28 to four 
years in prison for striking and killing a pedestrian in May. 
 
¶3.  The organizers did not have official permission to hold the 
protest, but the police at the scene let it proceed without much 
interference.  The Almaty deputy police chief told the organizers 
beforehand that they could proceed as long as they did not march or 
hold up posters.  When the protesters did unfurl three posters that 
said "Today - Zhovtis, Tomorrow - You!," the police simply 
confiscated the signs and let the demonstration continue. 
Uncharacteristically, the organizers were not detained or fined for 
holding an unsanctioned protest. 
 
OTHER ACTIVISTS NOT SO LUCKY 
 
¶4.  In contrast, authorities detained or fined several NGO activists 
who similarly protested.  Since Zhovtis' conviction on September 3, 
his colleagues from the Human Rights Bureau and independent 
activists held four separate small demonstrations in downtown 
Almaty, and in all four instances, police detained and fined the 
organizers for holding unsanctioned rallies. 
 
DIFFERING VIEWS FROM THE MEDIA 
 
¶5.  The Almaty print media conveyed various views on the trial and 
the conviction.  The opposition and independent newspapers, like 
"Respublika," "Svoboda Slova," "Vzglyad," and "Vremya," expressed 
full support for Zhovtis.  Opposition newspapers warned that it was 
the authorities' "dream to limit [Zhovtis'] movements and freedom." 
Russian-language, pro-government news outlets, like "Kazakhstanskaya 
Pravda" and "Megapolis," reported the story without pronouncing 
judgment on Zhovtis' guilt or innocence.  Some Kazakh-language 
press, however, ran commentaries that called for Zhovtis to be 
treated "as any other citizen" and blamed the Russian-language media 
outlets for "forgetting about the victim's tragedy."  Media's 
attention to the case has subsided significantly in recent weeks, 
but it will likely pick back up when Zhovtis' appeal is heard on 
October 20. 
 
ZHOVTIS -- "THIS PLACE NEEDS ME" 
 
¶6.  In the meantime, Zhovtis' wife Svetlana Vitkovskaya, told RFE/RL 
that Zhovtis was studying Kazakh and had no plans to leave 
Kazakhstan in the future.  Zhovtis reportedly asked his wife to 
bring him textbooks in Kazakh.  When his wife wondered whether the 
time has come to leave Kazakhstan, Zhovtis said "I will go nowhere 
-- this place needs me and it is important for me to be in 
Kazakhstan." 
 
¶7.  COMMENT:  Because the Almaty police usually detain and fine 
organizers of unsanctioned protests, the fact that Azat's protest 
went largely unfettered could signify that local authorities were 
told to handle carefully Zhovtis-related events and avoid incurring 
 
ASTANA 00001816  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
further bad publicity.  Media views fall largely in line with the 
outlet's affiliations, with the opposition newspapers highlighting 
the injustice to Zhovtis, while the Kazakh-language media, which 
tends to be more nationalistic and pro-government, concentrated on 
the fate of the Kazakh victim.  END COMMENT. 
 
HOAGLAND